First Anniversary Blog

It’s been a busy year here at The Filo Project and seeing as August 12th marked our first anniversary now seems an appropriate time to provide an update on our progress. To kick things off here are some comparative statistics – in our first full month of trading we supported a total of 51 client spaces, at the end of July 2015 this had risen to 343. Also, last August we had just one host, but as of writing today we have 18 plus an Area Co-ordinator. Happily both our client and host numbers are on a path of continual increase as we penetrate into more and more parts of the county. Aside from the figures, other top Filo facts of the past year include being awarded Lead Provider status for Devon County Council, receiving generous financial support from local and regional funders, as well as featuring as a top news item on BBC Radio Devon.

Collaboration is absolutely key to The Filo Project model of care and the success of any Filo group is only possible through the crafting together of both client and host to make it so. Similarly the success (reflected in its swift expansion) of the organisation is also directly born out of the collaboration of a number of groups whose work is greatly appreciated; our sensitive, responsive and capable hosts, our clients and their families plus a long list of engaged parties including Onward Care at the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital , Community Psychiatric Nurses, Community Life Choices Review Team, Social Workers, Assessment and Review teams, Community Care Workers, Occupational Therapists, and Older Peoples’ Mental Health, the Alzheimer’s Society.

Our aim at the point of conception was to use clients’ wellbeing as a barometer of profit, a discussion with a client just last week demonstrated that we are indeed profitable. While discussing what, or if, FILO might be an acronym for, this particular client had settled on ‘Friends In a Lovely Organisation.